Gackt

Gackt
Gackt
	Gackt as Uesugi Kenshin at Jōetsu city's Kenshin Festival in 2008.
Background information
Born	4 July, 1973
Origin	Okinawa, Japan
Genres	J-rock, J-pop, alternative rock
Occupation(s)	Singer, songwriter, actor, model
Instruments	Voice, piano, drums
Labels	Nippon Crown
Associated acts	Malice Mizer, Skin
Website	www.gackt.com

Gackt Camui ( 神威楽斗 Kamui Gakuto ) is a Japanese musician, songwriter and actor. Usually referred to by his stage name Gackt, he is best known for his work with Malice Mizer and his following career as a solo artist. Besides Japanese language, he has performed in English, Korean, Cantonese and Mandarin.

Biography

Early life

Gackt was born in Okinawa, Japan on 4 July 1973. He is the second of three children, with an older sister and a younger brother. His father and mother were music teachers who played various instruments with his father primarily playing the trumpet. According to his autobiography, he was a mischievous child and enjoyed taking risks; at age seven he nearly drowned while swimming off the coast of Okinawa. After this near death experience, he claimed to have the ability to see and speak with the deceased, a notion which was dismissed by his parents. At the age of ten, Gackt was hospitalized with a gastrointestinal tract and had to remain at the hospital for a long time. He made the acquaintance of several terminally ill children, some of whom died during his stay.^[1]

Gackt's musical education began at age three, when his parents started his classical piano education, of which he grew tired four years later. It would take another four years until his parents allowed him to quit. Competition with a friend lead to Gackt taking back up the piano, and he was later encouraged to learn other various instruments, especially those used in a rock band, throughout the rest of his time in school.^[1]

Malice Mizer

In 1995, Gackt joined Malice Mizer as the group's vocalist, lyricist and pianist. Fan base and record sales grew substantially over the following years. Malice Mizer released two albums with Gackt (Voyage ~Sans Retour~ and Merveilles) along with seven singles. According to Gackt, when he began taking on more roles in the band, he was asked to leave the group.^[1] The other members of the band say that this is not true and that Gackt simply "disappeared" after waiting for him once their break was over.^[2]

Solo career

Gackt began his solo career on 12 May 1999 with the release Mizerable. Several albums, singles and videos have followed. He has also done voice acting and motion capturing. He co-wrote and co-starred in the 2003 movie Moon Child, which also stars Hyde (vocalist of L'Arc~en~Ciel) and Wang Lee Hom (Taiwanese-American actor-singer).^[3] Also in 2003, Gackt published his autobiography titled Jihaku and for Caparison Guitars, he has designed two guitars, named "Marcury" and "Venus".^[4]^[5]

In 2007, Gackt played the warlord Uesugi Kenshin in the TV drama Fūrinkazan^[6] The single "Returner ~Yami no Shuuen~", was released on June 20, 2007. This was the first in his career (both solo and in a band) to reach the number one spot on the Japanese Oricon charts.^[7] Gackt was also the voice actor for Malthazar in the Japanese release of the film Arthur and the Minimoys.^[8]

On 19 December, Gackt released an album titled 0079-0088 containing 8 tracks, which had either previously been used on the soundtracks of the Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam movies or were covers of earlier songs from the Gundam franchise.^[9] It was created as a tribute to the creator of Gundam, Yoshiyuki Tomino, for his birthday.^[10]

Skin

On 25 May 2007, the formation of the supergroup Skin was announced, which also consists of Miyavi, Sugizo and Yoshiki. The group gave its debut performance at an Anime convention in Long Beach California on 29 June 2007.^[11]^[12]

GacktJob

GacktJob is Gackt's live support band. Its current lineup is as follows:

Yukihiro "Chachamaru" Fujimura–backing vocals, lead guitar
You–violin, guitar
Ju-ken–bass (currently touring with Anna Tsuchiya)
Nell–bass (filling in for Ju-ken)
Minami–drums
Igao–keyboard

Former members:

Masa–rhythm guitar
Ren–bass
Ryu–drums
Toshi–drums
Jun-Ji - drums

Gackt Media

Gackt performing with Yellow Fried Chickenz in Barcelona, 2010.
Gackt at the "Thai-Japan Iconic Music Fest", Bangkok, Thailand, 2023.
Gackt in 2013 on Indonesian RCTI greeting BIMA Satria Garuda.
Gackt with Sasaki Nozomi, Tom Hiddleston and Samuel L. Jackson at the Japanese premiere of Kong: Skull Island in 2017.
Gackt as Uesugi Kenshin at Jōetsu city's 83rd Kenshin Festival in 2008.
Gackt featured on a commercial sign (left downward) in Shinjuku, Tokyo, 2019.
Gackt interviewed in Malaysia, 2023.